White House

The Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department has forbidden a pro-life gathering and chalk display during Inauguration Week – and now the group is fighting back with a lawsuit against the District of Columbia.

Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, said the department is banning the event because of its message.

"For over 16 years, law enforcement officials have given permission to the Christian Defense Coalition to use public 'sidewalk chalking' as a part of their demonstrations and vigils in the nation's capitol. The City of Washington, D.C., has also allowed numerous public 'chalk art displays' throughout the city," he said in a statement. "It is therefore most troubling that for the first time the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department is banning this practice when it involves a pro-life display in front of the White House."

Thursday, Jan. 22, marks the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Since 1974, pro-life activists have gathered in Washington, D.C., each year to protest the decision and call attention to millions of lives lost.

The Christian Defense Coalition and Generation Life and Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust asked for permission to meet and draw sidewalk chalk messages on the sidewalk near the White House, as many groups have often done during public assemblies.

However, Commander James Crane denied their request in a Jan. 7 letter. He also said applying chalk to Pennsylvania Avenue and adjacent sidewalks "would constitute defacing public property in violation of D.C. Official Code 22-3312.01."

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James Matthew Henderson Sr., senior counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, immediately responded to Crane's letter, claiming the commander applied laws intended to prevent graffiti to the group's chalk display.

Washington, D.C., 2005 event invited children to "chalk for peace."

He cited other cases where sidewalk chalking was permitted – including a youth chalk art contest the city hosted for three years, and a D.C. event in 2005 where children were invited to "chalk for peace." He included pictures of the incidents.

Ryan said permission was denied to Rev. Mahoney based on the groups' viewpoint and content of speech.

Now the Christian Defense Coalition is filing a lawsuit in U. S. District Court on Friday, accusing the police department of infringing on First Amendment free speech rights. The pro-life activists are seeking a temporary restraining order against police.

"Is this the future of free speech and political dissent under President Obama?" Mahoney asked in his statement. "The streets in front of the White House should be open to all views, opinions and thoughts. It should not be a place of censorship and intimidation. I hope this was not the kind of change President Obama was talking about."

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